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General Aspects

To drive a motor caravan in Chile you must be 23 years old. You do not need a special driving license but we recommend to carry along always the international driving license.

Drop-off charges

Drop-off charges (when taking over or returning the car in a different location than the head office in Santiago) are considerably high, but if you take a look at the enormous distances between Chilean cities you will easily understand the calculation.

Beginning and/or ending your journey in Santiago will always be the best and less expensive way.

Return fees and transportation costs
Arica                         Iquique           SantiagoPuerto MonttCoyhaiquePunta Arenas
990 €860 €0 €600 €1450 €1450 €

Chile is popular all year round. Therefore there is no peak season surcharge. There is a minimum rental of one week on all models.

Maintainance and Service

The road conditions in Chile, especially on back-country roads, can be quite bad. This is why for the equipment of our motor caravans, we have preferred functionality over luxury or high tech.

The vehicles are latest models and are maintained regularly. Anyway, technical problems may occur, and in the worst case far away from the next professional help. Basic technical knowledge is therefore an important requirement for your trip.

All technical failures during the journey are covered by our insurance including the wrecking service in easily accessible areas. Depending on the vehicle type (Nissan, Toyota etc.), only authorized garages may be hired for repairs.

If the vehicle needs to be towed away please call the provider. The telephone numbers are shown on the emergency leaflet which comes with the car documents. The wrecking service is covered also by the insurance, except for a flat or a problem with the car battery.

An important information to keep in mind when using the rental car or camper is not to leave personal documents or valuables unattended inside the vehicle for any reason, whether in a parking lot or otherwise.

Crossing to Argentina

You may cross to Argentina with the motorhome or camper but you need a special notarial permission which has to be prepared beforehand and which is valid for a period of 15 - 30 days. This permission allows you to cross the border unlimited times. The vehicles can only be used in Chile and Argentina. Additionally you have to take out an international car and third party liability insurance for Argentina, which costs differ according to the vehicle type and the duration of the stay.

Travel guides and maps of Chile

The best and most up-to-date road maps of Chile have been published by the Chilean publisher Compass. They cover the whole of Chile in 9 sheets at a scale of 1: 400,000.

Detailed travel and trekking maps of major tourist destinations and national parks are available in excellent quality under the label Trekkingchile, among others for San Pedro de Atacama and Pucón Villarrica, Llanquihue and Torres del Paine. All maps mentioned here can be purchased via the website of Trekkingchile.

For GPS devices by Garmin there are two digital maps of Chile available: NAV Chile as a complete navigation map and Topo deluxe Chile as a topographic map, also with navigation function. Both cards are also available as memory chips on the Trekkingchile website.

For smartphones there are also digital applications for navigation available, such as Waze.

More information on Driving in Chile.